Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) will hold a public press conference TONIGHT (Feb. 22, 2012) in advance of UFC 144: "Edgar vs. Henderson," which will take place this Saturday (Feb. 25, 2012) at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan.
The press conference will begin at 11 p.m. ET and will take place at Ritz Carlton Grand Ballroom in Tokyo, Japan. Scheduled to attend will be the headlining fighters of the evening, Frankie Edgar, Ben Henderson, Quinton Jacson, Ryan Bader, Jake Shields and Yoshihiro Akiyama.
Japanese fighters Eiji Mistuoka, Yushin Okami, Hatsu Hioki, Norifumi Yamamoto, Riki Fukuda, Takeya Mizugaki and Takanori Gomi will also be in attendance.
*Update - There was a technical issue that prevented the conference from streaming live, but a full video replay is now available after the jump.
Edgar is the current UFC Lightweight champion, having twice defeated B.J. Penn in 2010 to win and defend the belt. He showcased his pure heart in coming back twice in consecutive fights against Gray Maynard last year earning a draw and closing out the trilogy with a fourth round knockout to make a statement.
His challenger, Henderson, is the former World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC) lightweight champion. He's been on a torrid run in the UFC thus far, defeating the likes of Mark Bocek and then knocking off top contenders Jim Miller and Clay Guida to earn his shot at UFC gold.
"Rampage" Jackson is the former UFC light heavyweight champion. He's been up and down since losing the title to Forrest Griffin and is most recently coming off a defeat via the hands of Jon Jones in a failed attempt to reclaim the 205 pound belt.
Bader was once considered one of the best 205-pound prospects in the UFC. After a very promising undefeated start to his career, he was derailed by Jon Jones and then completely stunned by Tito Ortiz. "Darth" Bader got back on track with a quick first round knockout in his last fight and will be right back in the thick of things if he can knock off the aging former Light Heavyweight champion.
Shields and Akiyama are two very experienced grapplers, as Shields' American jiu-jitsu and Akiyama's judo prowess have helped them have tremendous success. Both men are currently on multi-fight losing streaks, however, and are hoping to turn things around in this welterweight scrap.
Video after the jump.
More on UFC 144 right here.
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